The peach has its full share of troublesome insects, entomologists listing about forty species, at least half of which are either destructive or annoying in New York. The peach cannot undergo hardships and once it is beset by parasites, it does not prosper. No small part of the peach-grower's time, therefore, is spent in combating the insect-pests of his trees. The several pestiferous species vary greatly in importance, the peach-borer probably holding first place in destructiveness.
The peach-borer (Sanninoidea exitiosaSay) is probably the commonest and is certainly the most ancient enemy of the peach in America. It is found everywhere east of the Rocky Mountains and, since it is a native, its natural host being the wild species of Prunus, it has been a parasite on the peach from the earliest introduction of this fruit. All in all, it is the most destructive insect-pest of the peach, its presence always endangering the life of the tree. All peach-growers know the peach-borer. It is a white, grub-like caterpillar with a yellowish, shield-like head, which lives and feeds in the trunk of the peach just below the surface of the ground, eating out irregular chambers and galleries underneath the bark, sometimes girdling the trees. The pest is easily discovered through the exudation from the infested part of gum mixed with borings and excreta. The borers are found at all times in the summer, usually very small in late summer and autumn but an inch or more in length in early summer. The borer is a larva of a wasp-like moth which lays its eggs in early summer; these hatch in from seven to ten days and the minute borers work their way into the tree. The moth may be deterred somewhat from depositing her eggs by thorough cultivation, mounding the trees and, according to some, by the use of obnoxious coverings or poisonous washes on the trunk. Preventive measures are seldom sufficiently effective, however, and the borers must be destroyed. This is best done by digging them out with a knife or wire—"worming" in the parlance of the peach-grower.
The lesser peach-borer (Sesia pictipesGrote & Robinson) is rather infrequently found infesting the peach in New York. It usually attacks only old trees or those showing injury from freezing or other causes. The borer is much like the common peach-borer, described in the foregoing paragraph, but is smaller, seldom reaching the length of four-fifths of an inch. Unlike the true borer, it infests the trunks as well as the crowns of peach-trees, feeding in much the same way. Fortunately the pest is not common in the State, for it is rather difficult to control, since not only the crown but the trunk must be reached in worming for the pest.
The plum-curculio (Conotrachelus nenupharHerbst) is sometimes a troublesome pest of the peach. It is a rough, grayish, hump-backed snout-beetle somewhat less than a quarter of an inch in length, an insect so familiar to fruit-growers as hardly to need description. The female beetle pierces the skin of the young peaches and places an egg in the puncture. About this cavity she gouges out a crescent-shaped trench, the puncture and trench making the star and crescent of the OttomanEmpire, hence the common name, "Little Turk." The egg-laying process may be repeated in a number of fruits and from each egg a larva hatches within a week and burrows to the stone, making a wormy fruit. Most of the infested fruits drop. Poisoning with an arsenate is the chief means of combating the pest. Rubbish and vegetation offer hiding places and hibernating quarters for the insects and hence cultivated orchards are most free from curculio. The thin-skinned nectarines are damaged most by the insect but peaches are attacked rather freely. Early peaches suffer much more than late ones from curculio; thus, of standard sorts in New York, Greensboro and Carman are usually injured more or less while Salwey and Chili seldom show a puncture. The plum-orchard is usually the source of supply of curculio and early peaches ought not, therefore, be set with or near plums.
San Jose scale (Aspidiotus perniciosusComstock) is as harmful to peaches as to any other tree-fruit. The insect is now so well known in all fruit-growing regions as scarcely to need description. It is usually first recognized by its work, evidence of its presence being dead or dying twigs—oftentimes the whole tree is moribund. Examination shows the twigs or trees to be covered with myriads of minute scales, the size of a small pin-head, which give the infested bark a scurfy, ashy look. If the bark be cut or scraped, a reddish discoloration is found. Leaves and fruit as well as bark are infested, the insidious pest, however, usually first gaining a foothold on the trunk or a large branch. Reproduction is continuous throughout the summer in this climate so that the insects multiply by leaps and bounds. The peach, possibly, succumbs more quickly than any other fruit, three years sufficing for the destruction of a young orchard if the pest be brought in on nursery stock. The rougher-barked, older trees resist longer and suffer less injury. Still, old orchards are irretrievably ruined in one or two seasons of unrestricted breeding. Peach-growers, in common with all fruit-growers, find the lime-sulphur solution applied in the dormant season the most effective spray in combating this insect. There are several insect-enemies of the scale that are valuable allies and entomologists say that the insects seem more susceptible to the climatic condition of the country than formerly but still natural checks are far from sufficient and the peach-grower should quickly attack with the spray-nozzle at the first appearance of scale.
Besides the San Jose there are several other scales more or less abundant in New York orchards, two of which make the peach their favoritehost. These are the West Indian peach-scale (Aulacaspis pentagonaTargioni) and the Peach-Lecanium (Eulecanium nigrofasciatumPergande). Neither, however, is very troublesome as far north as New York and both are kept well under control by the treatment for the more common San Jose. The Lecanium is responsible for the discolored, sooty peaches occasionally found in parts of the State; for, though the discoloration is caused by a soot-fungus, the fungus lives in the honey-dew of the scale.
The black peach-aphis (Aphis persicæ-nigerE. F. Smith) is sometimes a serious pest in light peach-soils in New York but is not nearly as troublesome here as it is in states having a larger proportion of sandy land since it seems to find life easiest in light, warm soils. The insect is an intensely black, shining louse with brownish legs. It lives underground more than above ground, maintaining itself for most part on the tender roots of newly set or nursery trees, being found only occasionally on shoots and foliage. An expert eye detects the presence of the lice by the sparse and jaundiced foliage of young trees which an untrained eye would say were down with incipient yellows—indeed countless numbers of young trees have been sacrificed to the yellow's pyre when they suffered only from lice on the roots. The pest is easily detected on stock received from nurseries—the chief source of infestation—and the trees may be dipped or fumigated as for San Jose scale, thus completely exterminating the aphids. Good culture and a dressing of some fertilizer will help to carry young orchards through an infestation though treatment to a dose of a pound of ground tobacco stems worked in the soil about the roots may be necessary.
There is, too, a green plant-louse (Myzus persicaeSulzer) more or less common on peaches in the State every season. It is very similar in appearance to the green aphis of the apple and other plants and makes its presence known by much the same effect on the leaves. It works on the underside of the leaves along the veins, causing the leaves to pucker, curl and crinkle much as with leaf-curl. This green louse, however, is seldom numerous or harmful enough on peaches to require treatment. Should treatment be required, no doubt nicotine, now the standard remedy for aphids on foliage, would keep the pest under.
The fruit-tree bark-beetle (Eccoptogaster rugulosusRatzeburg), known in New York as the shot-hole borer, is often a serious menace to old or decrepit peach-trees. The beetle is a small, cylindrical insect an eighth of an inch long, one-third as wide, the body uniformly black and the surfaceclosely and deeply pitted and punctured, the punctures on the wing-covers arranged in rows. Injury to the peach by this insect is first indicated by exudation of gum from trunk and branches and later by numerous small, round holes as if the tree had been struck by shot. Healthy, vigorous trees are seldom attacked and if so the larvae do not develop, but a peach-tree suffering a decline from any cause whatsoever is open to immediate attack and once the pest gains foothold the plant is doomed. Here, indeed, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, for keeping the orchard constantly in healthy, vigorous condition to avoid accidental introduction, and prompt removal and destruction of infested trees, both preventive measures, constitute the only satisfactory treatment.
The peach twig-borer (Anarsia lineatellaZell.) imported from Europe, has at times been a troublesome pest of the peach in parts of the United States but causes little injury in New York. Still, it can be found every year in nearly every peach-district in the State and needs, therefore, to be guarded against since it may some time appear in sufficient numbers to become formidable. The adult is a moth the larva of which is about one-half inch long, pinkish in color. This larva is the borer and in early spring attacks tender shoots boring down into the pith. It passes from one succulent shoot to another so that often many wilted shoots may be examined before the borer is found. Fortunately peach-trees send out shoots about as rapidly as this pest can destroy them so that in New York, at least, unless the tree is much weakened in vitality, not much harm is done. The twig-borer has small chance in a well-kept orchard, but, should it attain headway, prompt treatment with arsenate of lead will at once cut short its career.
Occasionally complaints come that the common rose-bug or rose-chafer (Macrodactylus subspinosusFabricius) is at work on the peach. Leaves, flowers and fruits are eaten. The fuzz on the epidermis of the fruit is a deterrent but once a beetle gets through into the flesh, a dozen more join in the banquet and the peach is quickly ruined. Now and then one hears of a crop destroyed by the beetle. Insecticides seldom avail, for the insects are very resistant to poisons. The insects breed only in waste places and hence they may be looked for in the orchards of the sloven or where slovenly kept fields adjoin. Cultivation and sanitation are, then, the preventives. In New York rose-bugs are abundant only in warm, sandy soils.
1.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:232. 1898.2.Mich. Sta. Sp. Bul.30:14. 1905.3.Albertson-HobbsCat.29. 1906.Admiral.4.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:335. 1903.Dewey.5.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.36. 1909.6.WaughAm. Peach Orch.201. 1913.
1.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:232. 1898.2.Mich. Sta. Sp. Bul.30:14. 1905.3.Albertson-HobbsCat.29. 1906.
Admiral.4.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:335. 1903.
Dewey.5.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.36. 1909.6.WaughAm. Peach Orch.201. 1913.
Perhaps the peach most of all desired nowadays by peach-growers is a very early, yellow-fleshed freestone. For years Admiral Dewey and Triumph, both seedlings of Alexander, have been grown to fill this place and both, in the main, fail. Admiral Dewey, while early, yellow in flesh and good in quality, is not always a freestone and has several other defects which make it nearly worthless as a commercial fruit. Thus, though the trees are very productive, the peaches run small, are so heavily pubescent as to be unattractive, are very susceptible to brown-rot and are often disfigured with the peach-scab. The trees, too, suffer much from leaf-curl. With Alexander as the parent, the trees should be hardy, and from behavior elsewhere, must be so rated; but they have not proved exceptionally so on our grounds. While nowhere largely planted, Admiral Dewey is often set, as no doubt it should be, for an early peach in the home orchard. Of the two early sorts, this variety stands shipment rather better than Triumph. The varieties are of about the same season, both coming a week or thereabouts later than the well-known Alexander.
Admiral Dewey was grown from a seed of Alexander by J. D. Husted, Vineyard, Georgia, in the latter part of the Nineteenth Century. It was introduced in 1899 by Mr. Husted and has since been grown commercially east and west, north and south. The American Pomological Society placed the variety on its fruit-list in 1909 as Dewey but the full name bestowed to commemorate the great Admiral should, we think, be retained.
ADMIRAL DEWEY
ADMIRAL DEWEY
Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, hardy, very productive; trunk thick, smooth; branches stocky, reddish-brown mingled with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, olive-green overspread with dark red, glossy, smooth, glabrous, with numerous lenticels, raised near the base.Leaves six inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval to obovate-lanceolate, thin; upper surface olive-green, smooth except near the midrib; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with reddish-brown glands; petiole one-fourth inch long, with one to seven large, reniform, greenish-yellow glands variable in position.Flower-buds small, short, conical, pubescent, plump, free; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers pink, one and one-half inches across, well distributed, usually in twos; pedicels short, thick, glabrous, green; calyx-tube dull reddish-green, orange-colored within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes short, broad, obtuse, glabrous within, slightly pubescent without; petals round-ovate, tapering to short, broad claws red at the base; filaments one-half inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil pubescent at the ovary, equal to the stamens in length.Fruit matures early; two and one-fourth inches long, two and one-half inches wide, round-oblate, slightly compressed; cavity deep, wide, abrupt, with tender skin; suture shallow, becoming deeper at the extremities; apex roundish or flattened, with mucronate tip variable in size; color deep orange-yellow, blushed with dark red, indistinctly splashed and mottled; pubescence heavy; skin thin, tender, adherent to the pulp; flesh yellow, tinged with red near the pit, juicy, stringy, tender, melting, sweet but sprightly; good in quality; stone semi-free to free, one and one-fourth inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, oval to obovate, flattened at the base, tapering to a short point, with grooved surfaces; ventral suture deeply grooved along the sides, wide; dorsal suture a deep, wide groove.
Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, hardy, very productive; trunk thick, smooth; branches stocky, reddish-brown mingled with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, olive-green overspread with dark red, glossy, smooth, glabrous, with numerous lenticels, raised near the base.
Leaves six inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval to obovate-lanceolate, thin; upper surface olive-green, smooth except near the midrib; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with reddish-brown glands; petiole one-fourth inch long, with one to seven large, reniform, greenish-yellow glands variable in position.
Flower-buds small, short, conical, pubescent, plump, free; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers pink, one and one-half inches across, well distributed, usually in twos; pedicels short, thick, glabrous, green; calyx-tube dull reddish-green, orange-colored within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes short, broad, obtuse, glabrous within, slightly pubescent without; petals round-ovate, tapering to short, broad claws red at the base; filaments one-half inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil pubescent at the ovary, equal to the stamens in length.
Fruit matures early; two and one-fourth inches long, two and one-half inches wide, round-oblate, slightly compressed; cavity deep, wide, abrupt, with tender skin; suture shallow, becoming deeper at the extremities; apex roundish or flattened, with mucronate tip variable in size; color deep orange-yellow, blushed with dark red, indistinctly splashed and mottled; pubescence heavy; skin thin, tender, adherent to the pulp; flesh yellow, tinged with red near the pit, juicy, stringy, tender, melting, sweet but sprightly; good in quality; stone semi-free to free, one and one-fourth inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, oval to obovate, flattened at the base, tapering to a short point, with grooved surfaces; ventral suture deeply grooved along the sides, wide; dorsal suture a deep, wide groove.
1.Cult. & Count. Gent.38:598. 1873.2.Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt.263, 264. 1874.3.Gard. Mon.17:367, 368. 1875.4.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.28. 1877.5.Gard. Mon.19:147, 303. 1877.6.HoggFruit Man.436. 1884.7.Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt.424. 1886.8.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:809, figs. 5 & 9. 1896.9.Ont. Fr. Exp. Sta. Rpt.6:21 fig. 1899.10.FultonPeach Cult.173. 1908.11.WaughAm. Peach Orch.198. 1913.12.U. S. D. A. Plant Immigrants117:958. 1916.Alexander's Early.13.Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt.75, 76. 1873.14.Horticulturist28:224. 1873.
1.Cult. & Count. Gent.38:598. 1873.2.Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt.263, 264. 1874.3.Gard. Mon.17:367, 368. 1875.4.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.28. 1877.5.Gard. Mon.19:147, 303. 1877.6.HoggFruit Man.436. 1884.7.Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt.424. 1886.8.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:809, figs. 5 & 9. 1896.9.Ont. Fr. Exp. Sta. Rpt.6:21 fig. 1899.10.FultonPeach Cult.173. 1908.11.WaughAm. Peach Orch.198. 1913.12.U. S. D. A. Plant Immigrants117:958. 1916.
Alexander's Early.13.Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt.75, 76. 1873.14.Horticulturist28:224. 1873.
For nearly a half-century Alexander has been one of the notable early peaches on this continent, hardiness and vigor of tree contributing with earliness to make the variety popular. Unfortunately, there are few fruit-characters to commend Alexander; the peaches run small, the flesh clings to the stone and is so tender that the two can be separated only with difficulty, and the quality is poor. Added to the defects of the fruit the trees have the grave fault of being unproductive. The fruits, too, are very susceptible to brown-rot but to offset this weakness, the trees are more resistant to leaf-curl than those of the average variety. Alexander has been more or less grown in every peach-region on this continent, sometimes attaining considerable commercial importance, but is now widely cultivated only on the Pacific Slope, and even here it is evidently destined to pass out before many years in the competition with newer and better sorts. It is often confused with Amsden though the two are quite distinct.
Alexander originated soon after the Civil War on the farm of O. A. Alexander, Mount Pulaski, Illinois. Since 1877 it has been on the fruit-list of the American Pomological Society. It has been the parent of a score or more of meritorious extra-early peaches.
ALEXANDER
ALEXANDER
Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, hardy, unproductive; trunk stocky, smooth; branches reddish-brown overlaid with light ash-gray; branchlets medium to long, olive-green overlaid on the sunny side with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with conspicuous, large, raised lenticels.Leaves six inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate, thin, leathery; upper surface dark green, smooth; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with dark red glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, glandless or with one to four small, usually globose, greenish-yellow glands tipped with red, variable in position.Flower-buds oblong-conic, pubescent, usually free; blooming season early; flowers pale pink, one and seven-sixteenths inches across, in well-distributed clusters; pedicels very short, thick, glabrous, greenish; calyx-tube dull green, light yellowish within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes short, broad, acute, glabrous within, slightly pubescent without; petals roundish, often broadly notched near the base, tapering to short, broad claws marked with red; filaments nearly one-half inch long; pistil pubescent at the ovary, equal to the stamens in length.Fruit matures very early; two and one-eighth inches long, two and one-fourth inches wide, round, slightly compressed, with sides nearly equal; cavity deep, abrupt or slightly flaring; suture shallow; apex depressed, ending in a mucronate or small, mamelon, recurved tip; color greenish-white becoming creamy-white, blushed and blotched with dark red, mottled; pubescence short; skin separates readily from the pulp; flesh greenish-white, juicy, stringy, sweet, very mild; fair to good in quality; stone clinging, one and one-fourth inches long, five-eighths inch thick, oval, plump, faintly winged, abruptly pointed at the apex, with slightly pitted surfaces and with a few grooves; ventral suture deeply grooved along the sides, bulged; dorsal suture deeply furrowed, faintly winged.
Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, hardy, unproductive; trunk stocky, smooth; branches reddish-brown overlaid with light ash-gray; branchlets medium to long, olive-green overlaid on the sunny side with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with conspicuous, large, raised lenticels.
Leaves six inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate, thin, leathery; upper surface dark green, smooth; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with dark red glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, glandless or with one to four small, usually globose, greenish-yellow glands tipped with red, variable in position.
Flower-buds oblong-conic, pubescent, usually free; blooming season early; flowers pale pink, one and seven-sixteenths inches across, in well-distributed clusters; pedicels very short, thick, glabrous, greenish; calyx-tube dull green, light yellowish within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes short, broad, acute, glabrous within, slightly pubescent without; petals roundish, often broadly notched near the base, tapering to short, broad claws marked with red; filaments nearly one-half inch long; pistil pubescent at the ovary, equal to the stamens in length.
Fruit matures very early; two and one-eighth inches long, two and one-fourth inches wide, round, slightly compressed, with sides nearly equal; cavity deep, abrupt or slightly flaring; suture shallow; apex depressed, ending in a mucronate or small, mamelon, recurved tip; color greenish-white becoming creamy-white, blushed and blotched with dark red, mottled; pubescence short; skin separates readily from the pulp; flesh greenish-white, juicy, stringy, sweet, very mild; fair to good in quality; stone clinging, one and one-fourth inches long, five-eighths inch thick, oval, plump, faintly winged, abruptly pointed at the apex, with slightly pitted surfaces and with a few grooves; ventral suture deeply grooved along the sides, bulged; dorsal suture deeply furrowed, faintly winged.
1.Ill. Hort Soc. Rpt.181. 1898.2.Rural N. Y.60:726, 774. 1901.3.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.35. 1909.4.N. Y. State Fr. Gr. Assoc. Rpt.21. 1912.Minnie.5.Mich. Sta. Bul.118:30. 1895.6.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:813. 1896.7.Ill. Hort. Soc. Rpt.53. 1896.8.Mich. Sta. Bul.169:220. 1899.9.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:351, 352. 1903.
1.Ill. Hort Soc. Rpt.181. 1898.2.Rural N. Y.60:726, 774. 1901.3.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.35. 1909.4.N. Y. State Fr. Gr. Assoc. Rpt.21. 1912.
Minnie.5.Mich. Sta. Bul.118:30. 1895.6.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:813. 1896.7.Ill. Hort. Soc. Rpt.53. 1896.8.Mich. Sta. Bul.169:220. 1899.9.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:351, 352. 1903.
Alton is everywhere held in high esteem as an early mid-season, white-fleshed, semi-free peach. It merits the esteem bestowed upon it by virtue of large size, handsome appearance and high quality of the peaches and hardiness and productiveness in the trees. It ripens a little earlier than Champion, long the favorite white-fleshed peach of its season, does not rot so readily when brown-rot is rife and hangs longer on the tree in good condition. It is not, however, quite so choicely good in quality as Champion, nor, on the Station grounds at least, are the trees quite as productive. Other faults of Alton are that leaf-curl takes heavy toll on unsprayed trees, the blossoms open so early as often to be caught by spring frosts, and the peaches show great variation in size and shape and even intexture and flavor. The accompanying cut shows the beauty of the outside but unfortunately on the grounds of this Station the variety is almost a clingstone so that the stone could not be separated to permit photographing the creamy-white flesh, red at pit, and, all in all, most tempting to the eye. Alton seems to be most at home in the Middle West and South and is not a familiar inhabitant of eastern orchards as a commercial product.
This variety originated with T. V. Munson, Denison, Texas, a quarter-century ago and was introduced by him under the name Minnie. By some it is supposed to have come from Alton, Illinois, and to have been introduced as Emma but this is an error. Munson's Minnie was tested at the Illinois Experiment Station from which place Stark Brothers Nursery Company, Louisiana, Missouri, received it and propagated it under the name Alton. In 1909 the American Pomological Society placed the variety upon its list of fruits as Alton, a name which usage makes preferable to the first one, Minnie.
ALTON
ALTON
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, hardy, medium in productiveness; trunk very stocky; branches thick, reddish-bronze overlaid with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, olive-green mingled with dull red, smooth, glabrous, with many small, inconspicuous lenticels.Leaves six and one-fourth inches long, one and three-fourths inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate, broad; upper surface dark green, rugose at the base; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with dark glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to four reniform glands, greenish-yellow, tipped with dull red, variable in position.Flower-buds small, short, conical, usually appressed, heavily pubescent; season of bloom early; flowers pale pink, nearly two inches across; borne usually singly; pedicels very short, glabrous, green; calyx-tube dull reddish-green, tinged with greenish-yellow within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes acute to slightly obtuse, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals roundish-oval, with blunt apex, frequently notched near the base, tapering to narrow claws; filaments one-half inch long; pistil pubescent at the ovary, as long as the stamens.Fruit matures in early mid-season; two and five-sixteenths inches long, two and five-eighths inches thick, round-oblate, slightly compressed, with unequal halves; cavity abrupt or slightly flaring; suture of medium depth; apex roundish, mucronate; color creamy-white overspread with dull red, dotted and splashed with carmine; pubescence thin, short; skin tough, adhering slightly to the pulp; flesh white, juicy, stringy, tender, pleasantly subacid; fair in quality; stone semi-cling, one and three-eighths inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, obovate, plump at the apex, winged near the base, with pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply grooved along the sides, narrow; dorsal suture deeply grooved.
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, hardy, medium in productiveness; trunk very stocky; branches thick, reddish-bronze overlaid with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, olive-green mingled with dull red, smooth, glabrous, with many small, inconspicuous lenticels.
Leaves six and one-fourth inches long, one and three-fourths inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate, broad; upper surface dark green, rugose at the base; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with dark glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to four reniform glands, greenish-yellow, tipped with dull red, variable in position.
Flower-buds small, short, conical, usually appressed, heavily pubescent; season of bloom early; flowers pale pink, nearly two inches across; borne usually singly; pedicels very short, glabrous, green; calyx-tube dull reddish-green, tinged with greenish-yellow within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes acute to slightly obtuse, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals roundish-oval, with blunt apex, frequently notched near the base, tapering to narrow claws; filaments one-half inch long; pistil pubescent at the ovary, as long as the stamens.
Fruit matures in early mid-season; two and five-sixteenths inches long, two and five-eighths inches thick, round-oblate, slightly compressed, with unequal halves; cavity abrupt or slightly flaring; suture of medium depth; apex roundish, mucronate; color creamy-white overspread with dull red, dotted and splashed with carmine; pubescence thin, short; skin tough, adhering slightly to the pulp; flesh white, juicy, stringy, tender, pleasantly subacid; fair in quality; stone semi-cling, one and three-eighths inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, obovate, plump at the apex, winged near the base, with pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply grooved along the sides, narrow; dorsal suture deeply grooved.
1.N. Y. State Fr. Gr. Assoc. Rpt.24. 1913.Arp Beauty.2.N. J. Hort. Soc. Rpt.100. 1911.3.N. Y. State Fr. Gr. Assoc. Rpt.213. 1913.4.N. Y. Sta. Bul.364:183. 1913.
1.N. Y. State Fr. Gr. Assoc. Rpt.24. 1913.
Arp Beauty.2.N. J. Hort. Soc. Rpt.100. 1911.3.N. Y. State Fr. Gr. Assoc. Rpt.213. 1913.4.N. Y. Sta. Bul.364:183. 1913.
Arp is the earliest good yellow peach. This is the chief reason for its cultivation though it has other good characters beside earliness to give it a place among yellow peaches. At this Station the trees are healthy, vigorous, productive and hardier in bud than the average, the buds having withstood the cold of two test winters. The round-oval shape and shallow suture give it a pleasing appearance of rotundity. To its shapeliness, add a skin creamy-yellow, heavily blushed with red and covered with short, thick pubescence with the sheen of velvet, and you have a beautiful peach—well shown in the color-plate. The flesh is light yellow, firm, juicy, sweet, rich, and of excellent quality, but unfortunately clings rather tenaciously to the stone. The season of Arp is from a month to five weeks earlier than Elberta and for so early a peach is remarkably long. It is somewhat susceptible to brown-rot. We do not know from experience how the fruit will ship but believe it will stand the wear and tear of transportation and markets as well as any of the standard peaches. Arp ought to be in every home orchard. Attention is called to the fact that the June Elberta in the hands of some growers is Arp.
Arp originated with C. P. Orr, Arp, Texas, about 1897. Elberta is supposed to have been one of the parents while the other may have been a peach of the Indian type. The variety was introduced by the originator about 1902.
ARP
ARP
Tree rather large, vigorous, spreading, hardy, productive; trunk stocky, intermediate in smoothness; branches thick, smooth, reddish-bronze overlaid with light ash-gray; branchlets with internodes intermediate in length, pinkish-red mingled with green, smooth, glabrous, with many smallish lenticels.Leaves six and one-fourth inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate, sometimes inclined to obovate, thin, somewhat leathery; upper surface dark green; lower surface grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with reddish-brown glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with one to three large, reniform, greenish-yellow or reddish-brown glands usually at the base of the leaf.Flower-buds intermediate in size and length, plump, oblong-conic, pubescent, appressed; blossoms opening in mid-season; flowers light pink, one and three-fourths inches across; borne seldom in twos; pedicels short, glabrous, green; calyx-tube dark reddish-green, dull orange within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes long, medium in width, obtuse to acute, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals round-obovate,usually broadly notched on each side of the base, tapering to short, narrow claws; filaments one-half inch long; pistil glabrous, pubescent at the ovary, equal to the stamens in length.Fruit matures early; two and one-sixteenth inches long, two and one-eighth inches wide, oval to round, compressed, the halves unequal; cavity medium to deep, wide, abrupt; suture shallow, deeper at the base; apex roundish or depressed, with a mucronate tip; color greenish-yellow changing to deep yellow, heavily blushed with red, indistinctly striped, with conspicuous, large dots; pubescence short, stiff, thick; skin thick, tough, adhering to the pulp; flesh light yellow mingled with faint stripes of red radiating from the pit, juicy, stringy, tender, sweet, highly flavored; very good in quality; stone clinging, one and three-sixteenths inches long, three-fourths inch wide, narrow-oval, plump, with short, acute apex, the surfaces pitted and with few short grooves; ventral suture slightly winged, rather widely furrowed; dorsal suture a deep, narrow groove.
Tree rather large, vigorous, spreading, hardy, productive; trunk stocky, intermediate in smoothness; branches thick, smooth, reddish-bronze overlaid with light ash-gray; branchlets with internodes intermediate in length, pinkish-red mingled with green, smooth, glabrous, with many smallish lenticels.
Leaves six and one-fourth inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate, sometimes inclined to obovate, thin, somewhat leathery; upper surface dark green; lower surface grayish-green; margin finely serrate, tipped with reddish-brown glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with one to three large, reniform, greenish-yellow or reddish-brown glands usually at the base of the leaf.
Flower-buds intermediate in size and length, plump, oblong-conic, pubescent, appressed; blossoms opening in mid-season; flowers light pink, one and three-fourths inches across; borne seldom in twos; pedicels short, glabrous, green; calyx-tube dark reddish-green, dull orange within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes long, medium in width, obtuse to acute, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals round-obovate,usually broadly notched on each side of the base, tapering to short, narrow claws; filaments one-half inch long; pistil glabrous, pubescent at the ovary, equal to the stamens in length.
Fruit matures early; two and one-sixteenth inches long, two and one-eighth inches wide, oval to round, compressed, the halves unequal; cavity medium to deep, wide, abrupt; suture shallow, deeper at the base; apex roundish or depressed, with a mucronate tip; color greenish-yellow changing to deep yellow, heavily blushed with red, indistinctly striped, with conspicuous, large dots; pubescence short, stiff, thick; skin thick, tough, adhering to the pulp; flesh light yellow mingled with faint stripes of red radiating from the pit, juicy, stringy, tender, sweet, highly flavored; very good in quality; stone clinging, one and three-sixteenths inches long, three-fourths inch wide, narrow-oval, plump, with short, acute apex, the surfaces pitted and with few short grooves; ventral suture slightly winged, rather widely furrowed; dorsal suture a deep, narrow groove.
1.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:233. 1898.2.Am. Gard.21:852. 1900.3.Ga. Sta. Rpt.13:308. 1900.4.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.35. 1909.Belle of Georgia.5.Am. Gard.17:67. 1896.6.Ohio Sta. Bul.170:172, 173 fig. 1906.Georgia.7.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.33. 1899.8.Del. Sta. Rpt.13:99, 100 fig. 5. 1901.
1.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:233. 1898.2.Am. Gard.21:852. 1900.3.Ga. Sta. Rpt.13:308. 1900.4.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.35. 1909.
Belle of Georgia.5.Am. Gard.17:67. 1896.6.Ohio Sta. Bul.170:172, 173 fig. 1906.
Georgia.7.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.33. 1899.8.Del. Sta. Rpt.13:99, 100 fig. 5. 1901.
Belle elicits praise from all who know it because of the great beauty of its fruits. At its best it is one of the glories of the peach-orchard, the fruits being large, trim in contour, creamy-white, with a beautiful crimson cheek—truly voluptuous in form and color. The color-plate—made in a poor season—falls far short of doing the fruits justice in size and art cannot depict the soft tints of red and cream which make Belle so beautiful. The fruits are as enticing to the eye inwardly as outwardly, the white flesh being delicately marbled, tinted with red at the pit and the flesh and pit usually part cleanly. Unfortunately, appearance misrepresents quality; for the variety, while good, falls short in flavor, and the flesh is stringy so that it must be rated as not above the average for its type. The trees are large, open-headed, a little straggling, fast-growing and hardy, though, like most of its type, easy prey to leaf-curl. Belle prefers a southern climate and in the South is often a good commercial sort but in New York is grown only for local markets and home use, hardly equalling Champion as a white-fleshed peach for distant markets.
Belle came from a seed of Chinese Cling planted in 1870 by L. A. Rumph, Marshallville, Georgia. The other parent is unknown but it is supposed to have been Oldmixon Free, a tree of which stood near the Chinese Cling tree. The variety came to notice about the same time as Elberta and has been thought by some to be a seedling of Elberta. The American Pomological Society listed Belle in its catalog in 1899 asGeorgia but in 1909 changed the name to Belle and it is so designated in horticultural treatises but popularly it is "Belle of Georgia."
BELLE
BELLE
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, open-topped, hardy, very productive; trunk thick; branches stocky, smooth, reddish-brown covered with light ash-gray; branchlets thick, medium to long, olive-green overlaid with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous conspicuous, rather small lenticels.Leaves five and one-half inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oblong-lanceolate, somewhat leathery; upper surface dark green, smooth; lower surface light grayish-green; margin coarsely serrate, tipped with dark red glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to six large, reniform or globose, greenish-yellow glands variable in position.Flower-buds large, long, oval, very plump, strongly pubescent, usually appressed; blooming season early; flowers pale pink but deeper in color along the edges, one and three-eighths inches across, often in twos; pedicels long, thick; calyx-tube dull reddish-green, yellowish within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes medium in length and width, acute to obtuse, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals roundish-oval, tapering to short, broad claws red at the base; filaments nearly one-half inch long; pistil pubescent at the ovary, longer than the stamens.Fruit matures in mid-season; two and one-sixteenth inches long, two and one-eighth inches wide, roundish-oval, often bulged near the apex, somewhat compressed, with halves nearly equal; cavity abrupt or somewhat flaring, red, with tender skin; suture shallow, deepening toward the apex; apex roundish to slightly pointed, with a mucronate tip; color greenish-white changing to creamy-white, blushed with red, with faint stripes and splashes of darker red, mottled; pubescence short, fine, rather thick; skin thin, tender, adherent to the pulp; flesh white, tinged with red at the pit and with radiating rays of red, juicy, stringy, tender, sweet, mild; good in quality; stone semi-free to free, one and one-eighth inches long, thirteen-sixteenths inch wide, oval, bulged near the apex, blunt at the base, with short, sharp point at the apex, with deeply-pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply furrowed along the sides, wide; dorsal suture a narrow groove.
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, open-topped, hardy, very productive; trunk thick; branches stocky, smooth, reddish-brown covered with light ash-gray; branchlets thick, medium to long, olive-green overlaid with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous conspicuous, rather small lenticels.
Leaves five and one-half inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oblong-lanceolate, somewhat leathery; upper surface dark green, smooth; lower surface light grayish-green; margin coarsely serrate, tipped with dark red glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to six large, reniform or globose, greenish-yellow glands variable in position.
Flower-buds large, long, oval, very plump, strongly pubescent, usually appressed; blooming season early; flowers pale pink but deeper in color along the edges, one and three-eighths inches across, often in twos; pedicels long, thick; calyx-tube dull reddish-green, yellowish within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes medium in length and width, acute to obtuse, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals roundish-oval, tapering to short, broad claws red at the base; filaments nearly one-half inch long; pistil pubescent at the ovary, longer than the stamens.
Fruit matures in mid-season; two and one-sixteenth inches long, two and one-eighth inches wide, roundish-oval, often bulged near the apex, somewhat compressed, with halves nearly equal; cavity abrupt or somewhat flaring, red, with tender skin; suture shallow, deepening toward the apex; apex roundish to slightly pointed, with a mucronate tip; color greenish-white changing to creamy-white, blushed with red, with faint stripes and splashes of darker red, mottled; pubescence short, fine, rather thick; skin thin, tender, adherent to the pulp; flesh white, tinged with red at the pit and with radiating rays of red, juicy, stringy, tender, sweet, mild; good in quality; stone semi-free to free, one and one-eighth inches long, thirteen-sixteenths inch wide, oval, bulged near the apex, blunt at the base, with short, sharp point at the apex, with deeply-pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply furrowed along the sides, wide; dorsal suture a narrow groove.
1.Mich. Sta. Bul.118:32. 1895.2.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.35. 1909.Bequett Free.3.U. S. D. A. Pom. Rpt.41. 1895.4.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.32. 1899.5.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:337. 1903.Becquette Free.6.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:806. 1896.7.Del. Sta. Rpt.13:91. 1901.
1.Mich. Sta. Bul.118:32. 1895.2.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.35. 1909.
Bequett Free.3.U. S. D. A. Pom. Rpt.41. 1895.4.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.32. 1899.5.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:337. 1903.
Becquette Free.6.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:806. 1896.7.Del. Sta. Rpt.13:91. 1901.
As it grows at this Station, Bequette Free makes a favorable impression because of the flavor and attractive appearance of the fruit. It is not a new variety, however, and the fact that it seems to have been rather widely and well tested without receiving general commendation except on the Pacific Slope is against its having a place in the list of desirable peaches for the Eastern States. The trees are fast-growing, very vigorous, hardy and densely clothed with foliage but cannot be called fruitful and are,possibly, a little too susceptible to leaf-curl. The color-plate shows the fruit to be a little more irregular than it is in nature.
This variety originated about 1860 in a seedling orchard of Benjamin Bequette, Visalia, California. J. H. Thomas of the same place named the sort and first propagated it about 1877. In 1899 the American Pomological Society added the variety to its list of fruits under the name Bequett Free but in 1909 corrected the spelling to Bequette Free.
BEQUETTE FREE
BEQUETTE FREE
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, open-topped, hardy, rather unproductive; trunk thick, smooth; branches stocky, smooth, reddish-brown mingled with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, olive-green mingled with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous large and small, inconspicuous, raised lenticels.Leaves very numerous, six and three-fourths inches long, one and three-fourths inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate inclined to broad-obovate, leathery; upper surface very dark green, smooth or slightly rugose; lower surface light grayish-green; margin coarsely serrate, tipped with dark glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to five large, reniform, greenish-yellow glands variable in position.Flower-buds large, long, oblong-conic, plump, pointed, heavily pubescent, usually appressed; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers light to dark pink, nearly one and one-fourth inches across, borne in ones and twos; pedicels short, thick, glabrous, green; calyx-tube reddish-green, light yellow within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes rather short, medium to narrow, nearly acute, pubescent within, heavily pubescent without; petals roundish-oval, slightly notched near the base, tapering to short, narrow claws tinged with red at the base; filaments nearly one-half inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil heavily pubescent at the ovary, longer than the stamens.Fruit matures in mid-season; two and one-half inches long, two and three-eighths inches wide, round-oval, compressed, often with unequal sides; cavity small, deep, abrupt or flaring, often tinged with red; suture shallow, deepening toward the apex; apex roundish, depressed at the center, with a small, recurved, mamelon tip; color greenish-white mingled with yellow, blushed, splashed and blotched with dark red; pubescence thick, long, coarse; skin thin, tough, separates readily from the pulp; flesh white, slightly tinged with red near the pit, juicy, stringy, tender and melting, pleasantly flavored, sprightly; good to very good in quality; stone nearly free, one and three-eighths inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, oval, with a short-pointed apex, medium in plumpness, with deeply pitted and slightly grooved surfaces; ventral suture slightly bulged near the apex, deeply furrowed along the edges, narrow; dorsal suture grooved.
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, open-topped, hardy, rather unproductive; trunk thick, smooth; branches stocky, smooth, reddish-brown mingled with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, olive-green mingled with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous large and small, inconspicuous, raised lenticels.
Leaves very numerous, six and three-fourths inches long, one and three-fourths inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate inclined to broad-obovate, leathery; upper surface very dark green, smooth or slightly rugose; lower surface light grayish-green; margin coarsely serrate, tipped with dark glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to five large, reniform, greenish-yellow glands variable in position.
Flower-buds large, long, oblong-conic, plump, pointed, heavily pubescent, usually appressed; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers light to dark pink, nearly one and one-fourth inches across, borne in ones and twos; pedicels short, thick, glabrous, green; calyx-tube reddish-green, light yellow within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes rather short, medium to narrow, nearly acute, pubescent within, heavily pubescent without; petals roundish-oval, slightly notched near the base, tapering to short, narrow claws tinged with red at the base; filaments nearly one-half inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil heavily pubescent at the ovary, longer than the stamens.
Fruit matures in mid-season; two and one-half inches long, two and three-eighths inches wide, round-oval, compressed, often with unequal sides; cavity small, deep, abrupt or flaring, often tinged with red; suture shallow, deepening toward the apex; apex roundish, depressed at the center, with a small, recurved, mamelon tip; color greenish-white mingled with yellow, blushed, splashed and blotched with dark red; pubescence thick, long, coarse; skin thin, tough, separates readily from the pulp; flesh white, slightly tinged with red near the pit, juicy, stringy, tender and melting, pleasantly flavored, sprightly; good to very good in quality; stone nearly free, one and three-eighths inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, oval, with a short-pointed apex, medium in plumpness, with deeply pitted and slightly grooved surfaces; ventral suture slightly bulged near the apex, deeply furrowed along the edges, narrow; dorsal suture grooved.
1.La. Sta. Bul.3:44. 1890.2.Ibid.27:941. 1894.3.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:806. 1896.4.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:233. 1898.5.Del. Sta. Rpt.13:92. 1901.6.Mich. Sta. Bul.194:45. 1901.7.BerckmansCat.10. 1912-13.
1.La. Sta. Bul.3:44. 1890.2.Ibid.27:941. 1894.3.Tex. Sta. Bul.39:806. 1896.4.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:233. 1898.5.Del. Sta. Rpt.13:92. 1901.6.Mich. Sta. Bul.194:45. 1901.7.BerckmansCat.10. 1912-13.
When at its best Berenice is hardly surpassed in quality by any other peach but it seems capricious, in the North at least, and this, with thefact that it is none too attractive in coloring, is probably the reason why the variety is not more grown. The trees are about all that could be desired, falling short chiefly in not being as productive as several other peaches of its season and in being a little susceptible to leaf-curl. The variety has been offered to fruit-growers a sufficient length of time to have had its merits well tried as a commercial peach and the fact that it is not now largely grown is presumptive evidence that it has little commercial value. Its high quality makes the variety a good sort for the home collection at least.
Berenice originated some thirty or more years ago with the late Dr. L. E. Berckmans of Augusta, Georgia. It is supposed to have sprung from the pit of a General Lee tree which grew in one of Mr. Berckmans' test orchards. In the Berckmans nursery catalog it is stated of Berenice that after thirty years' trial "there is nothing equal to it in the same season."
BERENICE
BERENICE
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, open-topped, hardy, medium to productive; trunk stocky; branches thick, smooth, reddish-brown mingled with light ash-gray; branchlets with short internodes, dark red overlaid with olive-green, smooth, glabrous, with numerous large and small lenticels raised at the base.Leaves six inches long, one and five-eighths inches wide, folded upward, oval to obovate-lanceolate, leathery; upper surface dark green, smooth; lower surface light grayish-green; margin coarsely serrate, tipped with dark glands; petiole one-fourth inch long, with two to ten large, reniform, yellowish-green glands variable in position.Flower-buds large, oblong, slightly pointed, heavily pubescent, usually appressed; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers one and three-sixteenths inches across, pale pink, tinged darker along the edges, well distributed; pedicels short, glabrous, green; calyx-tube red mingled with dull, dark green, orange-colored within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes often broad, acute to obtuse, glabrous within, slightly pubescent or heavily pubescent without; petals round-ovate, broadly notched, tapering to short claws red at base; filaments three-eighths inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil pubescent at the ovary, longer than the stamens.Fruit matures in mid-season; two and five-eighths inches long, two and one-half inches wide, round-oval, with halves often unequal; cavity deep, medium to wide, contracted around the sides, with tender skin, often blushed with red; suture shallow, deepening toward the apex; apex roundish or depressed, with a mucronate or mamelon tip; color greenish-yellow, blushed and splashed with red; pubescence short, medium fine; skin tough, separates from the pulp; flesh yellow, faintly tinted with red near the pit, stringy, tender and melting, sweet, mild, pleasant flavored; good in quality; stone nearly free, one and three-eighths inches long, fifteen-sixteenths inch wide, oval, plump, drawn out at the ends, usually with pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply furrowed along the edges; dorsal suture deeply grooved, with sides slightly wing-like.
Tree large, vigorous, spreading, open-topped, hardy, medium to productive; trunk stocky; branches thick, smooth, reddish-brown mingled with light ash-gray; branchlets with short internodes, dark red overlaid with olive-green, smooth, glabrous, with numerous large and small lenticels raised at the base.
Leaves six inches long, one and five-eighths inches wide, folded upward, oval to obovate-lanceolate, leathery; upper surface dark green, smooth; lower surface light grayish-green; margin coarsely serrate, tipped with dark glands; petiole one-fourth inch long, with two to ten large, reniform, yellowish-green glands variable in position.
Flower-buds large, oblong, slightly pointed, heavily pubescent, usually appressed; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers one and three-sixteenths inches across, pale pink, tinged darker along the edges, well distributed; pedicels short, glabrous, green; calyx-tube red mingled with dull, dark green, orange-colored within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes often broad, acute to obtuse, glabrous within, slightly pubescent or heavily pubescent without; petals round-ovate, broadly notched, tapering to short claws red at base; filaments three-eighths inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil pubescent at the ovary, longer than the stamens.
Fruit matures in mid-season; two and five-eighths inches long, two and one-half inches wide, round-oval, with halves often unequal; cavity deep, medium to wide, contracted around the sides, with tender skin, often blushed with red; suture shallow, deepening toward the apex; apex roundish or depressed, with a mucronate or mamelon tip; color greenish-yellow, blushed and splashed with red; pubescence short, medium fine; skin tough, separates from the pulp; flesh yellow, faintly tinted with red near the pit, stringy, tender and melting, sweet, mild, pleasant flavored; good in quality; stone nearly free, one and three-eighths inches long, fifteen-sixteenths inch wide, oval, plump, drawn out at the ends, usually with pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply furrowed along the edges; dorsal suture deeply grooved, with sides slightly wing-like.
1.BridgemanGard. Ass'tPt.3:109. 1857.2.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.21. 1897.3.WaughAm. Peach Orch.199. 1913.Blood Clingstone.4.PrinceTreat. Fr. Trees17. 1820.5.FloyAm. Fruits411. 1825.6.DowningFr. Trees Am.493, 494. 1845.7.Ibid.601. 1869.8.FultonPeach Cult.201. 1908.Blood Peach.9.KenrickAm. Orch.197. 1841.Indian Blood Cling.10.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.18. 1871.Indian Blood.11.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:237. 1898.
1.BridgemanGard. Ass'tPt.3:109. 1857.2.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.21. 1897.3.WaughAm. Peach Orch.199. 1913.
Blood Clingstone.4.PrinceTreat. Fr. Trees17. 1820.5.FloyAm. Fruits411. 1825.6.DowningFr. Trees Am.493, 494. 1845.7.Ibid.601. 1869.8.FultonPeach Cult.201. 1908.
Blood Peach.9.KenrickAm. Orch.197. 1841.
Indian Blood Cling.10.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.18. 1871.
Indian Blood.11.Ga. Sta. Bul.42:237. 1898.
Blood Cling is the favorite curiosity of the peach-orchard and as such we accord it a color-plate and a full description inThe Peaches of New York. Unfortunately, the beet-red color of the flesh could not be reproduced with sufficient accuracy to make the attempt satisfactory. It is a pleasant peach to eat out of hand and is much used for pickling and preserving, for which purposes it has real merit. The round-headed, compact tree might make the variety a desirable parent in breeding new peaches.
This peach is an American seedling raised many years ago from the Blood Clingstone of the French. The fruit is much larger than that of the parent sort but otherwise is much the same. The Blood Free raised by John M. Ives of Salem, Massachusetts, while somewhat of the nature of Blood Cling, is, nevertheless, a different sort. The American Pomological Society listed Blood Cling in its catalog in 1871 under the name Indian Blood Cling. In 1897 this name was changed to Blood Cling.
BLOOD CLING
BLOOD CLING
Tree large, vigorous, round, compact, hardy, unproductive; trunk thick; branches stocky, reddish-bronze, with a light ash-gray tinge; branchlets slender, long, with short internodes, olive-green overlaid with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous usually small, inconspicuous lenticels.Leaves five and three-fourths inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate; leaves thin, somewhat leathery; upper surface dark green, varying from smooth to rugose; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, with dark brown glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to five reniform, light or dark green glands variable in position.Flower-buds large, long, plump, oblong-conic, pubescent, free; flowers open in mid-season; blossoms pink, one and three-eighths inches across; pedicels short, glabrous, pale green; calyx-tube dull, speckled, greenish-red, light greenish-yellow within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes long, narrow, acute, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals oval to ovate, crenate near the base, tapering to short, narrow claws white at the base; filaments three-eighths inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil pubescent, seven-sixteenths inch long, equal to or shorter than the stamens.Fruit matures very late; one and three-fourths inches long, one and seven-eighths inches thick, compressed, with unequal halves often giving a lopsided appearance; cavitynarrow, abrupt, usually white; suture shallow; apex round, with a mucronate tip; color dull greenish-white, entirely overspread with dingy pink mingled with splashes and stripes of darker, clouded red, mottled; pubescence long, coarse; skin tough, adherent to the pulp; flesh red, becoming lighter colored next the stone, juicy, coarse, stringy, tough and meaty, brisk, pleasantly flavored; fair in quality; stone clinging, one and one-fourth inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, oval to slightly obovate, short-pointed, strongly bulged near the apex, with grooved and pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply furrowed at the sides, narrow; dorsal suture deep, medium in width.
Tree large, vigorous, round, compact, hardy, unproductive; trunk thick; branches stocky, reddish-bronze, with a light ash-gray tinge; branchlets slender, long, with short internodes, olive-green overlaid with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous usually small, inconspicuous lenticels.
Leaves five and three-fourths inches long, one and one-half inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate; leaves thin, somewhat leathery; upper surface dark green, varying from smooth to rugose; lower surface light grayish-green; margin finely serrate, with dark brown glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to five reniform, light or dark green glands variable in position.
Flower-buds large, long, plump, oblong-conic, pubescent, free; flowers open in mid-season; blossoms pink, one and three-eighths inches across; pedicels short, glabrous, pale green; calyx-tube dull, speckled, greenish-red, light greenish-yellow within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes long, narrow, acute, glabrous within, heavily pubescent without; petals oval to ovate, crenate near the base, tapering to short, narrow claws white at the base; filaments three-eighths inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil pubescent, seven-sixteenths inch long, equal to or shorter than the stamens.
Fruit matures very late; one and three-fourths inches long, one and seven-eighths inches thick, compressed, with unequal halves often giving a lopsided appearance; cavitynarrow, abrupt, usually white; suture shallow; apex round, with a mucronate tip; color dull greenish-white, entirely overspread with dingy pink mingled with splashes and stripes of darker, clouded red, mottled; pubescence long, coarse; skin tough, adherent to the pulp; flesh red, becoming lighter colored next the stone, juicy, coarse, stringy, tough and meaty, brisk, pleasantly flavored; fair in quality; stone clinging, one and one-fourth inches long, seven-eighths inch wide, oval to slightly obovate, short-pointed, strongly bulged near the apex, with grooved and pitted surfaces; ventral suture deeply furrowed at the sides, narrow; dorsal suture deep, medium in width.
1.Mich. Sta. Bul.118:33. 1895.Blood-leaved Peach.2.Gard. Mon.13:206. 1871.3.Ibid.14:316, Pl. 1872.4.Ibid.15:142, 183. 1873.5.Horticulturist28:155. 1873.6.Gard. Mon.17:58, 59. 1875.
1.Mich. Sta. Bul.118:33. 1895.
Blood-leaved Peach.2.Gard. Mon.13:206. 1871.3.Ibid.14:316, Pl. 1872.4.Ibid.15:142, 183. 1873.5.Horticulturist28:155. 1873.6.Gard. Mon.17:58, 59. 1875.
Blood Leaf is a handsome ornamental. Its beet-red leaves in early spring and its pink blossoms, borne in great profusion, entitle it to esteem for both foliage and flowers. It is worth growing as well for its fruits. The color-plate opposite page 78 shows the flowers and the accompanying illustration depicts the fruit-characters. The peaches are in no way remarkable and yet they please some as a dessert fruit. Seedlings springing up under two trees of this variety in the Station orchard in 1913, furnished interesting data on the inheritance of the blood-red color in the leaves of this peach. Out of 252 young trees, 189 were red-leaved and 63 green-leaved—an exact three-to-one ratio to show that the green color is carried as a recessive.
Several stories are told of the origin of this peach. One is that on the battlefield of Fort Donelson, Kentucky, a southern general, fatally wounded, sucked the juice of a peach and threw the stone into the little pool of blood which flowed from his side. From this pit in its bloody seed-bed sprang the tree with its blood-red leaves. John L. Hebron, in a letter published inGardener's Monthly, 1873, tells a different tale. According to Hebron the variety was found by P. I. Connor in 1866 at Champion Hills, Mississippi, on the battlefield where General Tilghman was killed, a tree having sprung up close to the spot where the General died. The variety is sometimes called the General Tilghman peach. Leaving fable and coming to facts, we find that the variety originated in Mississippi in the sixties and was introduced to the trade in 1871.
BLOOD LEAF
BLOOD LEAF
Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, willowy in growth, open-topped, hardy, unproductive; trunk thick, rough; branches smooth, reddish-bronze overspread with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, with short internodes, dull green overlaid with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous small, inconspicuous lenticels.Leaves four and three-fourths inches long, one and one-fourth inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate with tendency to obovate, thin; upper surface when young purplish-red but changing to green, smooth or rugose; lower surface purplish-olive; margin finely serrate, tipped with small, dark glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to five small, reniform, greenish-yellow, red-tipped glands variable in position.Flower-buds large, oblong-conic, plump, pubescent, appressed; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers one and one-half inches across, pale pink, occasionally in twos; pedicels nearly sessile, glabrous, greenish; calyx-tube dark, dull red mingled with green, yellowish within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes long, narrow, acute, glabrous within, slightly pubescent to heavily pubescent without; petals oval, slightly contracted toward the apex, tapering to short claws; filaments three-eighths inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil equal to the stamens in length.Fruit matures very late; one and five-eighths inches long, nearly one and five-eighths inches wide, roundish-oval, slightly compressed, with unequal sides, with prominent bulge near the apex; cavity deep, narrow, abrupt, contracted about the sides, marked with narrow, radiating stripes of pale red; suture very shallow, becoming deeper toward the apex; apex roundish or slightly depressed, with a small, mucronate or recurved, mamelon tip; color greenish-white and pale yellow, lightly washed with dull pink which changes to dull brown, in some cases deepening to a reddish blush; pubescence thick, short, fine; skin thin, tender, adherent to the pulp; flesh white to the pit, juicy, coarse, meaty but tender, sweetish, with some astringency; poor in quality; stone clinging, over one inch long, three-fourths inch wide, oval, very plump, tapering to a short, blunt point at the apex, with grooved surfaces; ventral suture lightly furrowed along the sides, rather wide; dorsal suture with narrow groove, slightly winged.
Tree large, vigorous, upright-spreading, willowy in growth, open-topped, hardy, unproductive; trunk thick, rough; branches smooth, reddish-bronze overspread with light ash-gray; branchlets slender, long, with short internodes, dull green overlaid with dark red, smooth, glabrous, with numerous small, inconspicuous lenticels.
Leaves four and three-fourths inches long, one and one-fourth inches wide, folded upward, oval-lanceolate with tendency to obovate, thin; upper surface when young purplish-red but changing to green, smooth or rugose; lower surface purplish-olive; margin finely serrate, tipped with small, dark glands; petiole three-eighths inch long, with two to five small, reniform, greenish-yellow, red-tipped glands variable in position.
Flower-buds large, oblong-conic, plump, pubescent, appressed; blossoms appear in mid-season; flowers one and one-half inches across, pale pink, occasionally in twos; pedicels nearly sessile, glabrous, greenish; calyx-tube dark, dull red mingled with green, yellowish within, campanulate, glabrous; calyx-lobes long, narrow, acute, glabrous within, slightly pubescent to heavily pubescent without; petals oval, slightly contracted toward the apex, tapering to short claws; filaments three-eighths inch long, shorter than the petals; pistil equal to the stamens in length.
Fruit matures very late; one and five-eighths inches long, nearly one and five-eighths inches wide, roundish-oval, slightly compressed, with unequal sides, with prominent bulge near the apex; cavity deep, narrow, abrupt, contracted about the sides, marked with narrow, radiating stripes of pale red; suture very shallow, becoming deeper toward the apex; apex roundish or slightly depressed, with a small, mucronate or recurved, mamelon tip; color greenish-white and pale yellow, lightly washed with dull pink which changes to dull brown, in some cases deepening to a reddish blush; pubescence thick, short, fine; skin thin, tender, adherent to the pulp; flesh white to the pit, juicy, coarse, meaty but tender, sweetish, with some astringency; poor in quality; stone clinging, over one inch long, three-fourths inch wide, oval, very plump, tapering to a short, blunt point at the apex, with grooved surfaces; ventral suture lightly furrowed along the sides, rather wide; dorsal suture with narrow groove, slightly winged.
1.Am. Gard.11:244, 378. 1890.2.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.32. 1899.3.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:340. 1903.4.WaughAm. Peach Orch.199. 1913.Garfield.5.Can. Hort.26:441, fig. 2665. 1903.
1.Am. Gard.11:244, 378. 1890.2.Am. Pom. Soc. Cat.32. 1899.3.Budd-HansenAm. Hort. Man.2:340. 1903.4.WaughAm. Peach Orch.199. 1913.
Garfield.5.Can. Hort.26:441, fig. 2665. 1903.
Brigdon is a local variety which possibly local pride puts too much in evidence in assigning it a place among the major varieties inThe Peaches of New York. Still, it belongs with the Crawfords, aristocrats among peaches, and this is enough to give it standing in a home collection at least. In tree and fruit it is similar to and a worthy rival of Early Crawford and has the same two fatal faults to bar it from commercial plantations—the trees are capricious as to soils and are often unproductive. On the other hand, a character of the tree to commend it to the amateur is that it is one of the least susceptible of all peach-trees to leaf-curl. The variety is well known only in western New York and is going out in this region.
Brigdon originated more than a quarter-century ago in Cayuga County, New York, and has been grown since more or less extensively on the shoresof Seneca Lake. The name Garfield was given to this peach by some one but why or when does not appear. The variety was added to the American Pomological Society's recommended list of fruits in 1899, a distinction it has since held.